If this is your first visit, be sure to
check out the FAQ by clicking the
link above. You may have to register
before you can post: click the register link above to proceed. To start viewing messages,
select the forum that you want to visit from the selection below.

Phillies in Serious Trade Talks for Wilton Lopez

The Phillies may be on the verge of trading for a late-game relief pitcher. Baseball sources say the team is in serious talks with the Houston Astros about acquiring righthander Wilton Lopez.

Lopez, 29, was 6-3 with a 2.17 ERA in 64 games for the Astros last season. A sinkerballer, he registered excellent control numbers, striking out 54 and walking just eight in 66 1/3 innings. He had 10 saves after taking over as closer when the Astros traded Brett Myers to the White Sox.

If the Phillies land Lopez, he could set up for closer Jonathan Papelbon. The Phillies have been looking for an eighth-inning setup man and pursued free agent Ryan Madson before he came to an agreement with the Angels.

Lopez is eligible for salary arbitration for the first time this winter.

Center field is still the Phillies' No. 1 offseason priority. They remain in serious discussions with free agent B.J. Upton.

If your referring to Valle, I would disagree. Valle projects to be nothing more than a solid backup catcher. Great defensively, but a very inconsistent, free swinger at the plate. When your BB% drops consistently as you reach the higher levels in the minors, that is a red flag in terms of his ability to be an every day major league player. Plus we have a logjam at catcher so moving Valle for a valuable piece would make sense. He isn't going to be a centerpiece to a bonafide stud trade, but this type of trade makes sense.

I'd be ok with moving 1 or 2 of: Valle, Hernandez, Schwimmer, Castro, Rosenberg, etc. I would not even entertain the idea of most of our Double A and lower talent for a solid relief pitcher. If I had to guess, it will be 2 prospects from the back end of our Top 30.

Valle projects to be a starter with adequate defense, good power, and an adequate hit tool. What he actually is right now is a rough defender with a poor plate approach.

It remains to be seen how close Valle can get to his ceiling, but that does seem to be a steep price for a guy like Lopez.

I would guess it's Schwimer plus another reliever like Diekman or Stutes.

Yeah I used poor phrasing there. As it currently stands, he doesn't look to be much more than a valuable backup. If we want to go on projection alone, we have a more highly regarded C prospect in Tommy Joseph and potential guys like Lino, Rupp, and I believe Ludy (not sure if I'm getting that name correct). Valle seems to be the odd man out to me with Joseph at the same level, so I would be ok using him as a piece in a trade.

We do have a logjam of C prospects. Valle is generally considered to be ahead of Joseph at this point, although the skill sets are quite similar.

Catcher is a hard position to fill and there is no guarantee that any of these guys pan out. It may be best to hang onto them. We should be open to trading from that depth, but not for a middle reliever.

Now writing for FanGraphs, RotoGraphs, The Hardball Times, and The Fake Baseball